"Postdoctoral Scholar Employee - Department of Mechanical Engineering"

Position overview

Position title: Postdoctoral Scholar

Salary range: The UC postdoc salary scales set the minimum pay determined by experience level at appointment. See the following table for the current salary scale for this position: https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/_files/2025-26/represented-oct-2025-scales/t23.pdf A reasonable estimate for this position is $70,344-$75,000.

Percent time: 100%

Anticipated start: Spring 2026

Position duration: The initial appointment is for two years with the possibility of an extension based on performance and the availability of funding.

Application Window

Open date: December 10, 2025

Next review date: Monday, Dec 29, 2025 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.

Final date: Saturday, Jan 31, 2026 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Applications will continue to be accepted until this date, but those received after the review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.

Position description

The Embodied Dexterity Group under the guidance of Professor Hannah Stuart in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley is accepting applications for a post-doctoral researcher to assist in the design and integration of novel tactile sensors with co-robot grippers for adaptive dexterous manipulation in an assistive capacity. The position will be funded by an ongoing NSF CAREER Grant.

This position focuses on research to enable a collaborative gripper to pick up objects and materials with variable properties from bins in an assistive manner alongside a human worker. This task presents major challenges in flexible and collaborative robotic manipulation because it benefits from both compliance and precision, as well as touch sensors. Ultimately, this project is aimed as assisting those with physical disabilities of the hands and arms in conducting manual tasks more effectively without assistance from another person.

Day-to-day duties involve a mix of independent research (study design, experiments, data analysis, literature review), writing (papers, grants), lab management (equipment maintenance, safety training), mentoring graduate students, and collaborative professional engagement (presenting at meetings, organizing workshops, co-authoring work with other researchers in lab).

Union: https://ucnet.universityofcalifornia.edu/resources/employment-policies-contracts/bargaining-units/postdoctoral-scholars/contract/

Qualifications

Basic qualifications (required at time of application)
PhD or equivalent international degree or enrolled in a PhD (or equivalent international degree) program.

Additional qualifications (required at time of start)
PhD or equivalent international degree.
No more than two years of post-degree research experience.

Preferred qualifications

• PhD in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, or similar degree program.
• PhD in areas related to tactile sensing, mechatronics and hardware design, contact condition, robotics and dexterous manipulation, or human assistive devices.
• Relevant experience as a sensor design researcher and/or hardware developer.
• Ability to effectively write and edit academic manuscripts for peer review.
• Ability to lead and mentor groups of researchers, such as PhD and MEng students.

Application Requirements

Document requirements

• Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V.
• Cover Letter
• Two key publications

Reference requirements

• 3 required (contact information only)

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05247

Help contact: jspitzer@berkeley.edu

Job location
Berkeley, CA